Even if an expert were asked to identify every word in the "Preface to the Holy Teachings of the Tripitaka of the Tang Dynasty", he would not deny that it was indeed written by the "Sage of Calligraphy" Wang Xizhi.
When writing the "Preface to the Holy Religion of the Tripitaka of the Tang Dynasty", there were a few missing words. Anyone who could find these words would be rewarded a thousand gold pieces for each word. This is the origin of a thousand gold pieces for each word. So why did the calligraphers of the Eastern Jin Dynasty actually write articles from the Tang Dynasty more than two hundred years later?
It turns out that Li Shimin, Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty, loved calligraphy, especially admired the two kings (Wang Xizhi and Wang Xianzhi), and was even more obsessed with Wang Xizhi's calligraphy. It was also during the period of Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty that Monk Xuanzang returned from India to obtain Buddhist scriptures. He submitted the carefully translated Buddhist scriptures to Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty for a preface. This preface was followed by the narrative written by Prince Li Zhi, Xuanzang’s thank you note and the Prajnaparamita Heart Sutra. Collectively, it was called the "Preface to the Holy Teachings of the Tripitaka of the Tang Dynasty", and the imperial court hoped to engrave the contents of the "Preface to the Holy Teachings" on the stele in the calligraphy of the great calligrapher Wang Xizhi.
When the eminent monk Huairen of Hongfu Temple in Chang'an learned about this incident, he felt that it was an honor for the Buddhist community and determined to take on this important task. Starting from the 22nd year of Zhenguan (648), Monk Huairen began to travel around, collecting word by word based on the content of the preface, narrative, thank you list, and Heart Sutra, and spent a lot of effort to collect and engrave the words from Wang Xizhi's ink. The workload was huge. After many hardships, the collection of calligraphy was finally completed in the third year of Xianheng (672), Emperor Gaozong of the Tang Dynasty, reproducing Wang Xizhi's charming and charming calligraphy style. This stele praises Xuanzang, a great monk from the Tang Dynasty, who traveled westward to seek Buddhist scriptures. It is also conceivable that the workload is huge and the process is difficult.
It is said that in the process of collecting calligraphy, monk Huairen could not find several characters, so he had no choice but to petition the imperial court. The imperial court then posted a notice asking who could contribute the urgently needed characters in the stele. , one word is worth a thousand pieces of gold. As a result, the legend that Wang Xizhi's calligraphy is worth a thousand gold spreads, and the rubbings of the preface to the holy teachings are also called "a thousand gold calligraphy" by later generations. Summary:
The Preface to the Tripitaka of the Tang Dynasty compiled by Monk Huairen basically retains the unique style of Wang characters, with a neat layout and vivid charm, as if it were completed in one go. It has always been valued by calligraphy enthusiasts.